Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd recently talked to Local 10 News This Week In South Florida Anchor Glenna Milberg.

Byrd, who oversees state elections, said 22 amendment initiatives did not make the 5 p.m., Feb. 1, deadline, including an amendment related to marijuana.

“We have had lots of reports of people saying that a petition was signed in their name that they didn’t sign, so we are continuing to get those in and continuing to investigate fraud,” Byrd told Milberg.

Some circulators who got paid to collect signatures and were from out of state were accused of fraud, according to Byrd.

“Foreign billionaires, who when they don’t have a legislature that will do what they want, then try to, in essence, buy Democracy, and have literally spent hundreds of millions of dollars around the country,” Byrd said.

Byrd said CS/HB 991 - Election Integrity, sponsored by Florida Republican Reps. Jenna Persons-Mulicka and Dana Trabulsy, would give elections administrators more authority to make sure that only U.S. citizens vote.

“This gives us additional tools, gives the supervisors different deadlines in which to do this,” Byrd said.

Watch the episode

Local 10 News Political and Special Projects Producer Meaghan O’Connor contributed to this report.

Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.